Mohave County miner., 1887-11-12
The Arixena Herd Law.

IN lts innntle Wlsoom saw NJ 10 enact the
following herd law, which constitutes
Section II, Of Title LxIII, Of the Revised
statutes Of the Territory:
"It being imprscticable to properly en-.
close the fields In this Territory. all AMI.
mails shall he kept under shepherd, 40
that no injury may result to the fields;
and II any damage should result Il shall
he paid by the owners Of the animals
causing the same. to be assessed by the
Justice Of the Peace OF the precinct in
summary manner. and paid to tho per.
son or persons whose field may have beer
damaged"
When one reads the foregoing he can
not but be surprised at the great mental
ealihre and common sense acumen OF the
Comm 'ssioners TO whom was delegated
and given by the last Legislature the al
thority to prescribe code o! laws for the
government of the $4,000 souls that con.
siitnte the population Of Arizona. That
brilliant genius, Cameron II. King, whose
labors and efforts as law.maker won
him the appointment Of Commissioner Of
Emigration for the Territory--a position
which he has chiefly utilized by prosti-
tutinp il to the furtherance Of suits ct law
based on litigious titiss purchased by him
for the sole purpose Of harrassng and
Matchmaking bona fide settlers. whom he
draws s,llary to protect--is said to be
responsible for the law in question, and
also for the wisdom displayed in the rea-
son set forth for it's enactment, viz: The
impracticibility to properly enclose the
fields in the Territory. When or where
the imposglbility Of enclosing Arizona
farms first dawned On the great mind oi
Mr.. King, IL is hard ~ conceive, unless,
perhaps, it was during ono Of the many
attempts he has made since his appoint
ment as Commissioner Of Emigration, te
enclose for his own use and benefit the
lands Of other people, whose titles wert
gained by honest labor instead Of the
legal chisanery which has marked Mr.
Kings career since coming TO Arizona. II
seems incredible that an Arizona Legis
lature could have been found willing Il
sanction the enactment of such an iniqui
tous law as this herd Law is. II is, how
ever. but in keeping with the special Ia,
and other burdensome laws placed on ths
cattlemen Of the Territory by the same
body Of wiseacres, aud yet the stockmer
OF the Territory are themselves alone tt
blame. Paying taxes on more than one
quarter Of all the taxable property IN th'
Territory, they have in the past seen fit 3,
sit still and silently permit their interests
to be sacrificed and jeopardized by ever,
blatant demagogue whom chance nigh
for the instant bring to the surface. To
day there is not under actual cultivation
in the entire Territory Of Arizona ont
hundred thousand acres Of land, and ye
the cattlemen who alone make the re
mainder of the $1,000 900 acres Of area
valuable and productive, must perfofct
keep their herds under close surveillance
because the Representatives their vote,
elected TO the Legislature saw fiji 70 dele
gate to others the duty OF enacting laws
just and equitable to all. Had Mr.. Kins
and his confreres on the Code Commission
recognized the fact that the cattlemsn o
the Territory had, like other men, rights
which should be respected. they would
not thus wsntonIy put them at the mercy
Of every Dogberry Of Justice Of the
Peace in the Territory. Had Mr.. King
been the lawyer he so fondly imagines
himself to be, he would have known tha,
all preceding Legislatures had fully recog.
uized the injustice Of enacting herd Law
in Arizona. by tho enactment Of fence
laws for every county in the Territory
where agriculture was pursued. II pas
Legislatures had recognized the necessity
and justice Of epacting fence laws, why
should not Mr.. King and his brethren OF
the Commission seen fit TO let such laws
remain Ia force, instead Of repeating them
and placing among the Statutes of the
Territory herd law In their stead? II IL
needless, however, to inquire into the
motives that led to the passage Of the
herd law now in force. To know that j,
is on the Statute books, and that II must
be enforced regardless Of consequences, is
all that is required Of cattlemen, whose
interests it SO deeply affects. Still the
lesson II teaches 10 one Of the many good
ones that have been brought home 10 the
doors Of the stockmen of Arizona for "lo
these Inany years." II may he suficien.
and it may not to teach them that just no
long as they remain disunitsd and un.
organised--th willing followers TO carry
the political yoke Of any glib-tongued ad.
venturer that may pose before them as
the embodiment Of their partisan beliefs
Just 90 long will their rights be trampled
under foot and their just claims TO equal.
ity before the law ignored. There Is but
one wav for them 10 secure any redress
for their wrongs, and that is by combin.
ing to demand as ono man that they be
treated with the same consideration that
is accorded to all other classes Of citizens
in the Territory. .--Hoct and Horn.
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II you ever notice look of intense alb
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